


All that's left is a sword

by hblake44



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, F/F, but they're not enemies, jinsoul is occasionally broke, lip is a sword this time, lipsoul, they bicker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-12 12:02:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29884287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hblake44/pseuds/hblake44
Summary: Jinsoul accidentally breaks a part of the curse on her sword, freeing a girl who was trapped in said sword. Stuck with each other, they'll have to break the rest of the curse. Jungeun also has to get caught up on the last three hundred years she missed.“I’m still processing the fact that my sword’s a human.”“I made it, so Eclipse is technically my sword.”“And you’re technically your own sword.”She sighed. “Not the point. Just don’t call me your sword, Jinsoul.”
Relationships: Jung Jinsol | Jinsoul/Kim Jungeun | Kim Lip
Comments: 2
Kudos: 92





	1. Don't call me your sword

**Author's Note:**

> Jungeun is the daughter of a blacksmith. Created Eclipse, as well as several other blades. Was forced to turn into Eclipse by witches three hundred years ago. 
> 
> Jinsoul is a magician who specialises in enchantments and illusions. Occasionally on the brink of bankruptcy. 

She’d done it. She was finally here. The place where Eclipse had been forged. 

To anyone else, it would’ve probably been an underwhelming relic of the past. Jinsoul found it beautiful. 

It was quiet, so quiet that each brush of the wind across the grass could be heard. As she walked, her footsteps created a small crunch whenever they sank into the ground. It was peaceful here, practically untouched since the migration out of the village. 

Jinsoul wondered if she was just imagining the sense of magic that permeated the air, or if that was really there. It probably was. She hoped it was. 

The buildings were half in ruin. A select few were standing, but others had crumbled, leaving only a few raised walls and collapsed roofs.

Jinsoul didn’t look in any of the intact houses. Any curses would’ve probably been countered, or set off, while any riches had long since been picked away. There were plenty of people who either hadn’t believed in, or hadn’t cared about, the darkness that surrounded this place. 

Jinsoul believed in it, but she’d also come here. 

She wanted to know where it had all began. She wanted Eclipse to return here as well. 

Her strategy had been to go on instinct as she’d always did. The only difference this time was that she was following a trail several _hundred_ years old. 

“We’ll be here a while.” She drew Eclipse from her scabbard. “You can always light the way if you want.” She looked down at the blade. 

There was, of course, no response. 

Jinsoul kept looking, wondering if she’d see that flash of red again.

The only red she did see was what lined the edge of the blade. 

Someone had cared enough about the blade to put such incredible detail into it. This sword must’ve taken ages to make. Then the spells cast over it had taken even more time. 

How could someone put so much time into something and _not_ have left anything here? She wasn’t looking for another sword, but there had to be something still here. Either something that could tell her more about the blacksmiths, or what exactly had happened here three hundred years ago. 

Jinsoul would find it. 

She kept walking, hoping she’d spot something before she had to start making runes. 

Eclipse started humming when she passed a house that was almost completely broken down. 

Jinsoul froze. The humming didn’t get stronger, but it didn’t fade either. It was both metallic and melodic, but she couldn’t make out the note. 

Carefully, she lifted the sword to her face. She only saw her reflection. 

Then there was a red flash and she saw someone else. It was only brief, but it was a different person. The only thing Jinsoul remembered were the eyes. Red. 

“Are we here?” Jinsoul asked, looking at the sword. 

No response, but the sword was still humming. 

“If this’s cursed,” she muttered, going towards the rubble. 

The humming got stronger, so much so that her hand trembled. Jinsoul was tempted to put Eclipse down, but she didn’t want to risk something happening now. What if Eclipse broke because Jinsoul had been stupid enough enough to drop her? It was durable metal, but she’d never touched stone with the sword. 

Jinsoul sheathed the sword. It kept humming, but it’d be covered if it scraped on any of the stone. 

She poked through the bricks, tossing some away when she felt no magic from them at all. 

Was this really where the smith of the sword had lived? They hadn’t had _any_ enchantments around the house? 

That should’ve been impossible. 

There had to be something underneath. 

She walked across the stones, managing to trip several times and scrape her knees. She stopped at the place where the humming was the strongest. There wasn’t anything out of the ordinary here. 

Jinsoul started shifting the rock within a metre radius. She couldn’t feel any flicker of magic when she touched the stone, but Eclipse kept humming. She was in the right place. She had to be. 

It took the good part of an hour for Jinsoul’s arms to start hurting. She’d only managed to move a segment. Now she was looking at rotted wooden floors. They didn’t smell, but she knew that when it rained, the process would just continue. 

Jinsoul cast a spell against the fumes first, knowing full well that if she started digging, she’d probably get some sort of terrible lung infection or another disease. The potions she had with her definitely didn’t protect her against that. 

She knelt down by the exposed bit of floor. She hadn’t found anything that might’ve once been of value. That’d been long since taken or washed away by the weather. This bit of the ground was also unremarkable, save for frayed bits of wood. 

She started to carve a rune into one of the biggest stones. It was a risky one, but she was almost certain that the rest of the rubble looked the same. And whatever was sending Eclipse into the state it was, she was close to it here. Still, it’d be better once she cleared away everything else. It just had to work. 

She finished the rune before leaping off of the rubble and sprinting away from the building. 

There was small shudder in the ground. It threw Jinsoul off her feet, her head hitting the ground. She groaned, pushing herself back up. The side of her face was bleeding and she was almost certain she had a concussion. 

She looked over at the house, to find that the rubble had been mostly cleared away. She grinned and stumbled over. She fell several times, but she eventually managed to get there. Eclipse started humming again. 

“We’ll make it work,” she muttered. “I’ll find it.” She patted the sword.

Jinsoul stepped over the stone that’d been tossed to the side. In the distance, she saw that a few bricks had hit the trees, breaking off pieces, or just toppling them on impact. 

_Oops._ She looked away and towards the ground. 

As with what she’d seen before, almost all of it had suffered from the weather. When it’d rained, the water had gotten through the stone and soaked into the floor. It’d stayed there when it got warmer and a lot of things had probably groan there. 

Jinsoul pulled out a cloth and wrapped it around her mouth and nose. She sank to her knees and pressed her hands to the ground. It was soft in some places, but there was nothing beneath the dingy floorboards, except for dirt and rock. 

She kept looking, praying she wouldn’t get some horrible infection in her fingers. She should’ve brought gloves, but she’d forgotten about that. 

Now she was trying to pry the floor away with the spare knife she’d brought. She’d barely sharpened this one. Eclipse was always what she used. The knife was just to have something else along with her and she hadn’t taken the new one with her. 

Jinsoul sighed. She’d spent another hour here and found nothing. She was starting to get a headache from the cloth cover. 

Then again, better that than getting a horrible disease by early next week. 

Eventually, she’d taken out all of the floorboards. Some had crumbled in her hands. Others had driven a splinter in that she’d had to take out. She’d have to put a good amount of ointments over them. 

She really wished she’d taken gloves. 

And there was nothing. No trap door. 

“You’re kidding,” Jinsoul muttered. “All this for that?” She drew out the sword again. It was still humming. “Do you wanna be buried here?” 

_No, you idiot,_ the voice was not her own, but it was in her head. 

Jinsoul yelped, stumbling back. She didn’t let go of Eclipse. There wasn’t supposed to be an _answer_ if she asked something. She just did it to fill the silence. 

_What do you do when you reach dirt?_ It sounded like a girl, a girl who was both tired and angry at the same time. 

“Dig?” 

_So dig_. 

Whatever feeling Jinsoul had gotten from the voice vanished. Eclipse was still humming. 

Jinsoul sheathed the sword and pulled the shovel she’d brought out from her back. She cleared away a bit more wood, before she sank the shovel into the ground. 

Briefly, she wondered if she should’ve been following the words of a voice in her head. 

Then she decided that following it would be better than ignoring it. She’d come so far. And there had to be something that Eclipse was drawn to. 

As far as she knew, the sword wasn’t surrounded by dark magic, so whatever awaited her probably wasn’t either. 

Hopefully. 

She kept digging, before the ground promptly gave way. She fell through to another floor, full of dust and more dirt. 

Jinsoul groaned, before coughing. Was all of this really worth for a sword?

 _Yes_ , she thought, pushing herself up. She hadn’t sprained anything, but she’d be covered in bruises by tomorrow. 

Jinsoul summoned a ball of magelight, illuminating the space around her. She gasped, then started to cough immediately after. 

She’d landed in a forge. _The_ forge where their weapons had been made. Where Eclipse had been forged. 

There were three anvils. They’d been shattered. The forge itself had been partially melted, even though it’d been made of stone. 

But it was still very clearly a forge. 

“You were right.” She drew out Eclipse, grinning. “I can’t believe it.” 

Then the sword nearly leapt out of her hand then. She tightened her grip on it. What was happening? Why had Eclipse moved? _How_ had it moved?

The sword pulled away from her again, pulling her to the melted stone forge. 

Jinsoul let herself be dragged over, careful not to trip over the blocks of metal still on the ground. None of it was rusted, even after all these years. 

The sword sank into the stone of the forge. There was no scraping sound. 

And then there was the sound of tearing metal. Jinsoul felt the sword grow almost three times as heavy as it was before. She almost slammed into the forge. The sword glowed a bright gold. 

In the next moment, she was holding the hands of another person. She gawked at what was in front of her. At the person in front of her. 

Her first thought was that she’d come face to face with a terrible trick of a demon. An otherworldly beauty that would proceed to tear her apart. 

Her next thought was that the girl looked too stunned to be an illusion or a trick, 

The third thought was that she was stunning. 

The next thought was that the girl’s skin was silver. 

“Let go,” the girl muttered. “I can’t feel my hand and I’d very much like to.” It was the voice she’d heard in her head. There was still the same exact irritation. 

Jinsoul let go. 

The girl looked at her hand with dread. Nothing happened. 

“What did you do?” she asked, voice filled with awe. Then she patted a hand to her face. Her hair was somewhere between silver and gold. She blinked once. Her eyes were silver, but the bottom of one eye was a streak of red. Like an crescent that had been drawn around the iris. 

“Eclipse?” Jinsoul gaped. 

Her brow furrowed. “Yes, I was your bleeding sword.” She sighed. “Now that we have that out of the way, how’d you get me out?” 

“Well to give you an idea about what just happened for _me_ , my sword vanished and you just appeared.”

“You don’t know?” The girl frowned at her. She spoke perfect Korean, but there was still an accent that Jinsoul couldn’t place. 

“Not yet!” Jinsoul exclaimed. “I’m still processing the fact that my sword’s a human.”

The girl gave her a long look. It didn’t help that she had a glare as sharp as the sword she’d been. “I made it, so your sword is technically my sword.”

“And you’re technically your own sword.”

She sighed. “Not the point. Just don’t call me your sword, Jinsoul.” “You know my name?” Jinsoul knew she sounded dumb. She felt dumb too. This girl had been a sword this entire time, and _she_ seemed more put together than Jinsoul was. 

Then it clicked. She’d been a sword this entire time. This was the blacksmith’s daughter, the one who’d helped create a lot of the weapons. She hadn’t died. She’d been trapped in the sword for hundreds of years. 

“‘Course I know your name,” she rolled her eyes, “it’s not only the same name of one of the first person who actually used me, but I also heard a few things now and again.” 

“Did you see anything?” Jinsoul stared at her. “I slept with you for years. And I kept you on the wall when I wasn’t.” 

The sword-girl’s face had turned a light bronze, but she was still scowling at her. “A sword doesn’t have eyes, you idiot.” 

“Idiot?” she repeated. “A full-grown person being a sword is possible, but a sword being able to see is stupid?” 

“Yes.”

Jinsoul nearly made her turn into a sword again. She wondered if that would work. “So you didn’t see anything.” 

“No.” She raised a silver brow. “And I think I should be very glad I haven’t.” 

Jinsoul’s face warmed immediately then. She looked away, focusing on the forge. Despite being more or less broken, the materials were all in relatively good condition. She hadn’t seen the chimney from above, so that was probably plugged. 

If she cast a few more spells, repaired what she could, replaced what she couldn’t, and cleared away more dirt, they’d probably be able to get the forge working again. She felt a little giddy at the thought. 

“I only experienced anything when I was held,” the girl said. “I felt when I was being swung at something. I knew what I made contact with. And I felt their soul if it was a living thing.”

Jinsoul looked back. 

Eclipse—the girl—was looking down at her hands. She didn’t look sad, but more thoughtful than anything, as if all this was coming to her at once and she was trying to understand it. Maybe she was. 

“Sorry.”

Jungeun looked up and shook her head. “You didn’t know I was there. You thought you were using a normal weapon.” 

“None of the weapons you made were normal,” Jinsoul said. “Normal are the ones of steel and iron.”

“And they’re terrible,” she finished. A small smile formed. 

Jinsoul decided then and there that she liked the sword a lot better when she smiled. 

_The sword_ , she repeated in her head. _This is a human being. Trapped in the form of a sword_. 

Still with silver skin and a red line under her eye. 

“Not terrible,” Jinsoul shrugged, “but I’m not planning on using them.” 

The smile grew. Jinsoul felt accomplished for getting it there. 

“Your parents probably shouldn’t have given you the blade so early,” she said. “I still remember being thrown to the floor.”

“Dropped,” Jinsoul corrected. “I was seven.” 

“And?” Her brow rose. “I could hold a blade at that age. Perhaps I couldn’t swing it, but I could definitely hold it.” 

“Maybe you were stronger than I was then,” Jinsoul gave her a look. “You probably grew up trying to lift slabs of metal.” 

The girl shrugged. “Manual labour was a great way to build my strength.” Her eyes flicked across Jinsoul’s form. “Though I think you’ve gotten better since then?” She raised a brow, meeting Jinsoul’s eyes again. 

Immediately, she felt a bit shy. “I’d hope so. You know, years later, after actual training?” 

She nodded once, before looking at the forge. Her face fell. 

“The bastards ruined it,” she muttered. “But they didn’t take everything.” She frowned, kneeling down beside a slab of metal. She put a hand on it. Her skin matched the metal perfectly. “The magic’s still there?” She sounded in awe. 

“What magic?” Jinsoul asked, going to her side. Somehow, it didn’t feel weird being around her. Thinking about what was actually happening was weird, because Jinsoul hadn’t expected to be around her sword _–_ turned–human, but she didn’t feel terrified being around her. 

Was that because she was so used to having Eclipse at her side normally?

“My father,” her voice caught then, “he cast anti-corrosion spells on all of this. Including something specific for stone.” She smiled slightly, but it was shaky. “I think it all lasted longer than he did.” She blinked several times. 

Jinsoul’s heart sank. This girl’s life had been hundreds of years ago. It probably didn’t feel like a lot of time had passed, but it was all gone. Her entire village had probably kept living on with their lives, while she’d been a sword. 

She didn’t know if she was making a mistake with this or not. Jinsoul gently took her hand. 

The girl didn’t pull away immediately. She closed her eyes and tears fell. It had a golden sheen, but was still transparent. 

“Do you know if they let him live?” she asked. “The rest of the village too?” 

“I never read about anything happening here, except for your work and then your disappearance,” Jinsoul said. “And it was only you.” Her father had stopped making weapons completely after that, but she wouldn’t tell her that now. 

The girl grimaced, but she looked relieved. “Good. That means they probably just kept me as blackmail. Or they lost me.” She peeked up at her. “Or your ancestors stole me.” 

“They usually bought from you,” Jinsoul explained. She let go of her hand. “The heads of the house wanted heirlooms, both for their descendants and our closest allies. It’s stayed that way.” 

“Then how’d you get Ecl—me?”

“The older Jinsoul,” she started, “she went after the last part of the arsenal. Eclipse was missing, but they’d known you’d been made and then stolen. The story isn’t exactly clear if she bought you back, if you’d been given back, or if you’d been stolen.”

The girl chuckled. “Either way, it’s probably led to me turning back into—well, me.” The smile faded. “Thank you. Even if you don’t know how it happened, I’m finally something close to human again.” She looked at her hands again. “But I think the spell, curse, or enchantment—whatever it is, is still there.” 

“Magic’s come farther since even then,” Jinsoul said. “I’m pretty sure there’s a way out.” 

“From what I remember, it was a combination of spells,” she replied. “And magic I’d never even known existed.” Her brow furrowed. “The actual spells weren’t anything I recognised or could probably tell you.” 

“Transfiguration like that is pretty illegal,” Jinsoul told her. “We have laws against it now, so unless they’d end up arresting me, we could contact people to try and fix this.” 

“We’ll see.” The girl sighed. “But for right now, I’d like to get out of this place.” She shuddered. “This’s where it happened.”

Jinsoul straightened and nodded. “I’ll figure something out.” She looked up at the hole. “Can I ask you something first?”

“I’ll probably be asking you more questions, so,” she trailed off, nodding. There was a bit more irritation there. “Ask.”

“What’s your name?” Jinsoul asked. “I don’t think Eclipse would be all that fitting anymore.” 

The corner of her lip tilted up. “Jungeun.” 


	2. We'll try it

Trying to get out of the forge turned into them trying to figure out how to turn Jungeun _back_ into a sword. 

Surprisingly, she was open to turning back, even with the slight chance of not being able to become a human again. 

Jinsoul wasn't so sure. “There's been some research into human transfiguration,” Jinsoul said. “I think there could be a bit more to go from there. Then we'll know."

Jungeun shrugged. “We’ll try it.” She then picked up some of the metal and tossed it out of the hole, one by one. It was almost as if they weighed as much as a heavy book. 

Jinsoul frowned. “Try what?”

“Get me out of there—not much, but a little,” she pointed up, “and we’ll see how it goes from there.”

“Are you sure that’ll work?” Jinsoul didn’t even know if the hilt counted as Jungeun’s head or if the blade was the rest of her body. What if her feet were just out of the hole?

“No.” 

Jinsoul frowned. “Then we should talk about this a bit more.”

“We will,” Jungeun said. “But first let’s try this. If it doesn’t work that way, we try something else.” She closed her eyes. 

“Don’t you think I should be holding you for it?” Jinsoul asked. Then she realised how strange that sounded. “Sorry, that sounded weird.”

She peeked out of one eye. “You might be right.” She held out a hand. 

Jinsoul wondered where this was coming from. Then again, she’d just known Jungeun for less than two hours. It didn’t matter that she’d had Eclipse for almost all her life. 

She took her hand then. 

Jungeun’s brow furrowed. Then there was the loud sound of crashing metal. A golden glow filled the area around them. 

And then Jinsoul was holding Eclipse again. 

“Can you hear me?” 

_Yes_. Jungeun’s voice was a lot calmer than the last time she’d been in her head. 

_Like this too?_ Jinsoul thought. 

_That too._ She sounded surprised. 

Could she actually sound like anything if Jinsoul was hearing it in her head? 

_Think less about that and let’s try what I said._ A pause. _Please_. 

“Didn’t think you had manners like that.”

 _Jinsoul_. A hint of a warning came. _There is some way that I can move like this. Don’t test me._

“And how will you get out of being a sword?” Jinsoul asked. “I could just keep you in the scabbard.”

The sword started to hum. 

“But what am I supposed to do?” She still felt uneasy with just trying this out. What if Jungeun got hurt? 

_Just lift me up. You don’t have to throw me out. We can try that later, but I’m not sure if I’ll turn back that way._

“And if you fall?”

 _Then I fall_. A few seconds passed. _Do it._

Jinsoul grit her teeth. 

_The worst that’ll happen is a broken nose or a twisted ankle_. _Then we’ll see if a part of me’s actually metal or not._

The sword rose in her hand slightly. Had that been Jungeun? 

_Come on._

Jinsoul lifted the sword to where she’d fallen through. “You’re a third of the way out.” 

Clashing metal. 

Suddenly Jungeun was staring down at her, hand outstretched in her direction. 

And then she started falling, her feet caught on the edge of the whole, before slipping. In the next moment, they were both toppling to the ground. 

Jinsoul felt the impact on her chest and back. It knocked the wind out of her. 

Jungeun coughed. “Are you,” another hack, “alright?”

“I think so? Unless you broke my ribs.” She managed to get out a laugh. “Luckily you don’t weigh like you’re made of metal.” 

Jungeun pushed herself up. She was sitting on her legs, looking slightly dazed. 

Jinsoul’s mind immediately went somewhere else. She shoved the thought _out_ of her head. 

The others would just tell her she’s been single for too long. She’d tell them that Jungeun was too pretty. 

Then Jungeun gingerly got off of her. She pulled Jinsoul up as well, brushing some of the dust away. 

“Sorry,” Jungeun grimaced, “but we know it could probably work.” She looked up. “We could try just holding the blade.” She looked around. “We used to have mitts here.” She went walking around the forge. She found another bit of metal and threw that out too, without offering an explanation as to why she was doing that. 

“Or,” Jinsoul frowned, looking up, “you could pick me up. I’ll grab your hand from up there and you turn into a sword. Then I’ll lift you up that way.”

Jungeun’s eyes lit up. “Yes! Let’s try that.” She came over. “Maybe throw that bag out first?” 

“What if someone comes by and takes it?” Jinsoul asked. “I’ve got food in there too.”

At the mention of it, Jungeun’s lips parted. “Do you think I’ll be able to eat?”

“Are you hungry?”

“Not really.” 

“Then we’ll find out after,” Jinsoul said. “I’ll leave it on the ground and you hand it up to me?” 

Jungeun shrugged, before bending her knees slightly. “Let’s see if it works this time.” 

Jinsoul felt more than a little weird getting closer this time. It didn’t get much better when Jungeun’s hands took her arms. She cleared her head of whatever other thoughts she was having.

“Put your foot on my leg,” Jungeun said. 

“I’m not sure if it’ll work this way.”

“Me neither.” Jungeun looked at her leg. “But do you have any other ideas yet?” 

“I could try casting some spells?”

“Is there a chance this would collapse?” Jungeun asked. 

“I don’t know.”

Jungeun chuckled. “Then we’ll try this way first. Put one foot on my leg. Then push yourself up on the count of two.”

Jinsoul really didn’t like the idea of that going wrong. She was also wearing boots that still had mud on them. They’d also hurt. 

“Can we try your idea first?” Jinsoul asked. 

Jungeun lifted a brow. “I thought you didn’t like it.”

“I don’t,” she admitted. “But it’s better than mine.” 

Jungeun took one of her hands then and turned into Eclipse. 

Jinsoul carefully took hold of the blade and held it up. 

“Almost half out,” she said. “Careful.”

When Eclipse turned into Jungeun, she was holding her foot. She immediately put her other one below Jungeun’s other foot. She hadn’t realised the girl was barefoot. 

Jinsoul’s arms weren’t nearly as strong for this as they had to be. 

“Stay still,” Jungeun called. “I’ve got a hold here, but not enough to get out.”

“Trying.” Jinsoul grit her teeth. “I’m not exactly strong.”

“I thought you’d gotten better from when you last dropped me.” 

Jinsoul pushed her feet, arms shaking. “I did.” 

“Okay.” Jungeun grunted as she pushed herself up. Jinsoul wondered if they’d had bench presses three hundred years ago. 

Pieces of dirt fall, hitting her in the face, but the ground doesn’t collapse like it had for Jinsoul. She isn’t sure if she’s supposed to be offended by that or relieved. Maybe both. 

Jungeun’s face popped out by the hole next. She smiled. “Is this where I leave and let you to try out those spells of yours?” 

“It’s been a long time,” Jinsoul said. “I think you’d want me around for a little longer.”

“We’ll see” She held out her hands.

“Bag first,” Jinsoul said, giving it up. 

“What’s _in_ here?” Jungeun stared at it. 

“Stuff.”

Jungeun gave her a look, now holding her hands out to her. “That’s helpful.”

Jinsoul took her hands. “Please don’t transform.”

“I won’t. Probably.” She hauled her up, gritting her teeth slightly. 

Jinsoul was more than surprised that Jungeun was able to do this. Her shoulders started to ache. 

And then she’d been pulled out. 

Jungeun let out a breath. 

The moment she looked around, her face fell. She hadn't looked before. Maybe because she'd known what she'd find? Or just too focused on getting them out? 

Jinsoul wished she’d given her a warning before. 

“What happened?" Jungeun's voice was strained, anger filling her eyes. "You said they spared the village. What—why's it _gone_?" Her eyes were teary. She was still looking at the ruins. 

“They did,” Jinsoul told her. “But at one point, people left this place. There’s a darkness here, and it hasn’t left even after all this time.” 

She deflated, whatever anger that'd been there vanishing. “How much,” Jungeun whispered. “How much time passed?”

“Three hundred years.” 

Her expression crumpled. 

Jinsoul grabbed her hand. “The people you knew lived out their lives,” she said. “I didn’t read about anything bad happening.” _Except what happened to you_. There might've been others, but she really hadn't found anyhting for that. 

Jungeun nodded, but she was crying. “I knew a lot of time passed,” she said weakly. “I just didn’t know how,” she trailed off, “three hundred years?” She looked at what was left of the house. Her home. 

“I’m sorry.”

She shook her head. “Stop apologising,” she muttered, squeezing Jinsoul’s hand. “You’re the one who got me like this.” She waved at her body. “I haven’t had a body for hundreds of years.” She chuckled. Golden tears still clung to her chin. “But it felt like a hundred, at most, maybe fifty.” 

Jinsoul didn’t know what to make of that. It was good that Jungeun hadn’t felt that time, but that said nothing about the reality that she’d missed _all_ of that time. So much had changed. They were lucky that they spoke the same language, but even that would have words Jungeun didn’t know yet. 

“Can we leave here?” Jungeun asked. “I don’t really—”

“Let’s go.” Jinsoul let go of her hand. She might’ve constantly held Eclipse, but that didn’t mean she knew Jungeun. Or was anywhere close to the friends and family she’d had. She didn’t have any of them anymore. 

_____

It probably shouldn’t have been funny, but watching Jungeun stare at the cooking pot nearly made her laugh. 

“What’s that?” She pointed at the black handles. 

“Plastic.” 

“Pla,” Jungeun trailed off. “What?” 

“It’s a pretty cheap material. Based on structure, it can be flexible or durable.” She dug around in her bag and pulled out a small plastic bag. “Here.”

Jungeun held it as if it were something alien. She pinched it and tugged lightly. “Strange,” she muttered. “And this’s supposed to be cheap?”

Jinsoul nodded. “Wood’s more expensive.” 

“But you can just get wood from the forests.” 

“It’s usually illegal if it’s not from your property, and not your job.”

Jungeun frowned. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Maybe, but it’s the law now.” 

“No one would know if I cut a tree down now, so what’s the difference?” 

“I’m a law-abiding citizen,” Jinsoul replied. “I’d probably stop you.” 

Jungeun smiled. “I’d like to see you try.” 

“Please don’t tell me you got some crazy sword training too.” Jinsoul grimaced. Jungeun was pretty, inventive enough to create a sword like Eclipse, and _smart_. 

“I don’t.” She chuckled. “But I’d probably win if it was a test of strength.” 

“Strength’s only a part of the story. There’s skill too.” 

Jungeun smiled. It was still strained at the edges. Of course it was. She was grieving.

Jinsoul didn’t know if it was different to actually experiencing the news directly, if it was worse, or just disorienting. She didn’t want to ask. She wasn't sure if she even could. 

“Ready.” Jinsoul put part of the food into a bowl. “This’s instant ramen. You just have to put boiling water in, mix in what’s in the packet, and then there’s this.” She handed it to her. She also gave her a fork. 

“No chopsticks? Is that also a thing of the past?” Jungeun asked, looking between it and the food. 

“It still is,” Jinsoul reassured her. “I just like travelling with a fork more. It’s easier.” 

She looked confused by it, but turned her attention to the food. She started eating, gingerly balancing the noodles on it. 

“It works better if you twirl it.” Jinsoul showed her. 

She did it and ate the first mouthful. Her eyes lit up. She started chewing with such an excitement that Jinsoul had to smile. 

“This’s so good!” Jungeun said. “And it’s ready-made?” She stared at it in wonder. “I would’ve needed so much time to make anything this flavourful.” 

“It’s not exactly healthy,” Jinsoul admitted. “When we get back. You’ll see real cooking again.” 

“But still, this is amazing.” She grinned. “Thank you.” She kept eating, savouring each bite. “I can’t say we weren’t fed well, but I’ve never had a portion this big.” She frowned at it. “I don’t think I’ll be able to eat it all.” 

“I can store the rest for leftovers,” she said. At Jungeun’s confused look, she added, “I’ve got plastic containers. They keep them in good condition, at least until tomorrow morning or later today. If you get hungry again.” 

“Amazing,” Jungeun muttered. “Is there a lot more that’s changed?” 

Jinsoul could only nod. “Do you want a huge shock? Or should I tell you about it?” 

Her brow furrowed. She looked at the pot. Then Jinsoul’s bag. “I think I’ll find out as I go along,” she said. “I don’t really like huge explanations.” She looked back at her, eyes once again wandering. “But am I supposed to just accept that the clothes of your time are _really_ different?” 

“Sorta,” Jinsoul shrugged, “you wouldn’t stand out much.” Except for the stains across the front. They looked like oil, as well as scorch marks. 

“Except for this.” She held up her arm, showing the silver skin there. It reflected the firelight slightly, turning bronze. 

“Except for that,” Jinsoul nodded, “but I’m not bad at illusions. I could help with that.” 

“You don’t have to,” Jungeun said. “You’ve helped me so much already. I can see how to fix this by myself too.” She gave her a small smile. “I’m sure you’ve got a life you need to get back to.” 

“I do,” she replied, almost relieved that Jungeun probably hadn’t been there for when deprecating humour started to go to ‘having a life’ or not. “But that’ll include getting you back to being—you know, not part sword.” 

Jungeun shrugged. “I’m not sure if that’ll happen. I’d never heard of a curse like this before, so I don’t even know if a solution ever came along with it.” 

“But maybe there is,” Jinsoul said. “I have to look into it, and ask people I know about what they know, and maybe we’ll find something.” 

The doubt in her eyes softened, if only a little bit. “But the second this whole thing starts to interferes with your life, you can stop helping me and I won’t mind.” 

Jinsoul gave her a look. “One, I don’t like doing that. Two, if I do have to do something, then I’ll just be taking a break from helping you, not stopping.” 

Jungeun was quiet. She was looking at her, almost as if she was trying to see something. 

After a few more seconds, Jinsoul shifted on the spot. “Unless you don’t want my help. I get that.” Maybe if Jungeun found out more about her, she’d change her mind. 

“I do,” she said. “It’s just, you don’t know me, even if you’ve heard of me.” She frowned slightly. “And the most I can do for you is turn back into a sword that you can use again.” 

“You won’t owe me anything,” Jinsoul said, hopefully sounding sure of herself. 

“I do,” Jungeun repeated, voice a bit sharper. “And you’re going have to accept that.” A pause. “I don’t know what it’ll be, but I’ll repay you for all this. Somehow.”

Jinsoul was close to arguing that this wasn’t something you repaid. 

Then Jungeun straightened. “You said you knew what happened. How? Was there really news about it?” 

“It’s the work of historians,” Jinsoul replied. She pulled her bag over again and looked. “Over the years, my family wanted to have histories for each of the blades you and your father made.” She pulled out her notebook. “I did some extra research into the town and found a few logs compiled about you.” Then she grimaced. “Sorry, that sounds weird. Again.”

“It does.” Jungeun nodded, looking apprehensively at the book. “People bothered enough to make notes about me?” Then understanding entered her gaze. “Right,” she scowled, “disappearance.” 

“From what I understand, any witches that were involved vanished too,” Jinsoul said. “But at the time, all that meant was that they probably left the country.” 

“And how did Eclipse,” she sighed, “how did I get back to this one? I know you said the previous Jinsoul found me, but do you know where?”

“Just that it was in a palace.”

Jungeun laughed then. “I was once able to go to a brief visit to the throne room.” She shook her head. “Are there still ones with finery like that? All in an entrance?”

Jinsoul just nodded. She tried not to keep her expression neutral. “They’ve also got incredible armouries. At least the ones I’ve seen.”

“You’ve been in palaces?” she asked. Then her brow rose. “Are you a noble? Royalty?” She glanced at the book. “Or is your family just really interested in history?”

“It’s complicated?” She really didn't want to start explaining that. 

“Ah.” Jungeun laughed softly. “A modern technicality or just very,” she tilted her head, “not what I should know?” 

“Not for right now,” Jinsoul admitted, pushing away the thoughts that came with it. “But I’ll tell you.” 

She just nodded. “But considering what you can tell me, who are you, actually?” she asked. “You seem to my history well enough.”

Jinsoul raised her hands. “I’ll tell you if you stop saying that like I’m creepy.”

Her brow rose, but a smile was starting to appear as well. 

“I’m not!” Jinsoul protested. “It’s not my fault I know who created my sword.”

“Technically it is,” Jungeun said. “You asked the questions and did whatever research you did.” She poked the book with her toe, frowning. 

“It’s called knowing your history.” 

Jungeun waved her hand. “Which isn’t really that important.” 

“That depends on the person.” 

She gave her a look. “When did knowing about an old civilisation ever save your life?” 

“Me knowing who you were and where you were from is the reason you’re not a sword right now.” 

Jungeun closed her mouth. 

Jinsoul grinned. “But to answer your question, I’m Jung Jinsoul, a wandering magician.” 

“Isn’t that just another word for a witch?” She said the word like it was foul. For good reason too. 

“Witches have covens and they don’t exactly use weapons most of the time.” 

“Magic counts as a weapon.” Jungeun glowered at her skin.

“Didn’t say it doesn’t,” she replied. “But they don’t have swords, not usually.” 

Jungeun nodded once, but she still looked confused. “You didn’t exactly use me—the sword much,” her eyes were on the empty scabbard, “so you’re not a mercenary or anything like that?”

Jinsoul shook her head. “I guard transports most of the time and do favours for the places we stop at.” 

“What sort of favours?”

She shrugged. “Wards, repairs, but most of the time I actually end up making them something new.”

Jungeun looked up then. “What do you make?” 

It was endearing to see the change. Jinsoul wondered again how conscious Jungeun had been over the years of being a sword. She hoped not so much. 

“Armour. I tried to make weapons, but it didn’t work all that well.” 

“And why don’t you wear any?” 

“I need the money.” 

Jungeun frowned. “With all the things you do, don’t you have enough?”

 _I used to_. Jinsoul blushed. “There’s high material costs.” 

She was quiet for a bit. “And?” 

She looked away. “I spend it on other things too.” 

Jungeun still looked confused. 

“I’ve got other projects,” Jinsoul said. “Things I can’t sell yet, but I’m working on them.” She then went to her bag, opening it. “Like this.” She took out one of her other books and put it in Jungeun’s lap.

The girl stiffened. 

Jinsoul got out one of the boxes. “I’m still working on the design, but,” she opened the book to the right page, “once it works, I think I’ll be able to make something great out of it.” 

For some reason, Jungeun looked relieved at the sight of the sketches. She traced her fingers over one. “What’s it supposed to hold?” 

“A spell,” Jinsoul said. “I’ve been trying it with illusions, maybe to get people who can’t to turn invisible, but I can only get destruction spells in.” She aimed the box at the sky and opened it. Flames shot from it in a long spurt. 

Jungeun gaped at it. “That’s incredible.” 

“Thank you.” It then sank in that the creator of over a third of the Jung’s arsenal had just complimented her work. Her face warmed. 

“Can I?” Jungeun looked at the box. 

She gave it to her. 

Jungeun peered at it, once with one eye squeezed shut, then she turned it upside down. “Did you enchant the whole thing, or the individual pieces too?” 

Jinsoul smiled, feeling a bit lighter now. “Enchanting multiple components needed more magic, a lot more than just the pieces.” She’d done it with armour occasionally, but not always. 

She shrugged. “I’ve never done it with something small or as detailed, but it can be more receptive to certain spells.” She looked at her hand. “The first times I made this sword,” she pinched a piece of her hair, the strands that were red, “the grip burned even when I tried to make it resistant.” 

“Until you divided the pieces?” That explained why it wasn’t nearly as smooth as the other ones. She’d grown accustomed to it, but it made sense. 

Jungeun smiled. It softened her entire expression. “I’m not sure if it’d be the same thing with illusions, but it might be worth a try.” She looked back to the book, turning the pages. “These are all yours?” 

Jinsoul had to fight the urge to hover or just take the book back. She wondered if the writing was too messy, or the scale too off to make any sense. “They are.”

She nodded, peering at one. “Still trying to make weapons?” She flipped it over to show a dagger. On the diagram, the hilt had been disconnected and the blade split into two. “Is it supposed to do more than stab someone?”

Jinsoul fought a smile. “It’s supposed to be a multi-tool of sorts. Maybe look harmless if I flipped the pieces around.” She pointed to the parts with the screwdriver. “And then, if guards left it alone, you’d have this with you.” 

Jungeun gave her a look. “Do you get into those situations a lot?” 

“Not really,” she said. “But things like this help me if a plan goes wrong.” 

Jungeun smiled slightly. She gave her the book back. “And what brought you here?” she asked. “Was it just to see where Eclipse had been made?”

“I wanted to see what was left,” Jinsoul admitted. “See if I could learn something from the forge you’d made. Or find anything else that could’ve survived.” 

“You can still do that,” she said immediately. “I think I’d just stay back a bit. Maybe wait.” Then she put her head in her hands, letting out a long sigh. “Or I could just tell you.” She peeked out through her fingers. “We also never made notes. The closest you would’ve come to were the orders my father made, and our sales, but I don’t think they exist anymore.” She tapped her head once. “Except for what I remember.” 

“Which is?”

“Almost everything,” Jungeun replied. Then a broad grin spread out across her face. “I think I know how I’ll repay you.” 

“I told you, you don’t have to.” 

“But you want to make weapons, don’t you?” Jungeun tapped her book. “I’m not sure how I’ll do as a teacher, but I’ll try and show you all I know.” She patted the stack of metal beside her. “You do have a forge where we’re going, don’t you?” 

Jinsoul stared at her. Jungeun had made Eclipse. _Eclipse_. And now she was offering to show her how she’d done it. 

She almost felt faint. 

“Are you alright?” Jungeun frowned at her. “Does your head still hurt from that first fall?” 

“No,” she laughed, “this is just a bit surreal.”

“A bit?” Jungeun repeated. “It’s been three hundred years. The sky might be the same, but we’ve got an entirely new material and hot food that can be ready in minutes. What’s next? There’s people flying?” 

Jinsoul didn’t reply. She almost didn’t want to tell her she was right. 

Except Jungeun caught that and her face grew slack with shock. She lay down in the next moment. 

“Don’t explain it,” she said. “Please.” 

“Did you want dessert?” 

Jungeun sat up, silver eyes bright. “You have that too?”

“Cookies,” she pulled out the little bag, “either nuts, chocolate, or both.” 

A smile appeared again, the brief existential crisis fading away. 

Jinsoul wondered if she should keep modern world discoveries strictly to food.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, thank you for reading this! This's a story that's just so much fun to write, which I definitely needed this week. 
> 
> I'd like to say I expect this to be a short story, but I can't guarantee that. It'll definitely be nowhere near as long as some of the others, but we'll see. I'll admit, having a character out of time is a favourite trope of mine. 
> 
> Hope you're all doing well! Do let me know what you think. 
> 
> See you next chapter.

**Author's Note:**

> @hblake44  
> https://curiouscat.me/hblake44


End file.
